Stafford Losing Retail Dollars

By URIAH KISER

STAFFORD COUNTY, Va. — Government jobs have come, but retailers have long overlooked Stafford County. Now, a new report shows why.

Surrounded by expansive shopping districts like Fredericksburg’s Central Park and an expanding Potomac Mills mall in Woodbridge, the report authored by the business consulting firm, The Riddle Company, estimates consumers spend $656 million each year outside of Stafford – where the demand for goods and services is estimated to be at $1.5 billion per year.

It’s a tough pill to swallow when the next wave of new developments in the region will be places to live, work, and play.

“All of our economic development and marketing efforts are carefully orchestrated to position Stafford County as a place where people can work at jobs that pay family-sustaining wages, as well as a community where people can enjoy their leisure time and dine and shop at locations of their choice,” said Stafford County Board of Supervisors Chairman Susan Stimpson in a press release.

Until now, retail is something county economic officials have failed to target. They’ve chosen instead to build on their location next to Quantico Marine Corps Base and have attracted leading technology and defense firms like Northrop Grumman, QinetiQ North America, ManTech International, and Intuit, all of which have passed over neighboring Prince William County to do trade in a jurisdiction that does not have a Business or Professional Licensing Tax.

By 2015, the average annual median household income in Stafford County is expected to be $108,000. It’ll be $103,000 in the county’s densely populated, suburban northern section, and $118,000 in the larger estate homes located in the mid-county courthouse area, the report states.

Based on those numbers, Stafford is ripe for stores like Whole Foods Market, Trader Joes, Williams & Sonoma, Aveda, and chain restaurants like Austin Grill, Cheesecake Factory, Bonefish Grill, or Gordon Biersch brew pub.

But Stafford is lacking dense areas of development and a traditional downtown, forcing drivers to use only a handful of congested roads like Interstate 95, U.S. 1, and Va. 610, or smaller, outdated two-lane roads to get where they’re going in rush hour traffic. That’s a turnoff for potential retailers. 

There are also long-standing, inaccurate perceptions about the county – even among longtime residents — that Stafford is a blue-collar economy and is lacking when compared to Fairfax and Loudoun counties, and Fredericksburg, the report states.

Those here enjoy a “country culture life on an urban fringe,” where 72 percent of the population is white. The amount of women with dollars to spend on children is high, and the number babies and school-age children even higher. But lacking is a creative and lively arts class of people normally found in more urban areas, the report states.

Economic factors also come in to play when looking at retail growth. Last year, Borders Books and Music declared bankruptcy and closed its doors at the Stafford Marketplace, and the redevelopment of the mixed-use Aquia Town Center – anchored by Northrop Grumman – has advanced at a staggering pace.

The report does outline growth opportunities, as a new website scheduled to be completed this year will be used to attract new retailers, showing market data and will “perpetuate positive media” and information.

Stafford’s cost of living, its high homeownership rate, affordable real estate, and newly completed projects like Stafford Hospital Center and Quantico Corporate Center should make the county appealing to retailers, according to the report.